3.9.16

President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Chief Executive Officer and
Co-founder of social networking website, Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, for
sharing his wealth of knowledge with Nigerian youths, and inspiring a
new generation of entrepreneurs.
The commendation is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on
Friday by Mr Femi Adesina, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and
Publicity.
Adesina said Buhari made the commendation he received the Internet entrepreneur at the State House.
He said that President Buhari told Zuckerberg that the various meetings he held with Nigerian youths since his arrival were
timely, as the country was already exploring opportunities to spur development through entrepreneurship.
Buhari said “Nigeria has always been identified as a country with
great potential for growth, especially with our youth population, but
now we are moving beyond the potential to reality.
“I am impressed by your simplicity in sharing your knowledge and wealth with those with less income,’’ he said.
According to him, the simplicity and magnanimity of the entrepreneur,
who is among the world’s richest men, has also challenged the culture
of lavish wealth display and impulsive spending that has become peculiar
to Nigerians.
He said “we are not used to seeing successful people appear like you;
we are not used to seeing successful people jogging and sweating on the
streets.
“We are more used to seeing successful people in air-conditioned
places; we are happy you are well-off and simple enough to always
share.”
In his remarks, Zuckerberg said he was impressed by the interest,
energy and entrepreneurial spirit displayed by young Nigerians in all
the ICT camps that he had visited.
He added that “I was highly impressed by the talent of the youths in
the Co-creation Hub in Yaba. I was blown away by their talent and the
level of energy that I saw.”
Zuckerberg said he was in the country to promote the penetration of
“fast and cheap” internet connectivity, Express-wifi, that would help
people to create online businesses and reduce poverty.
NAN